Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'
Chapter 295 - 111. Liberty

Chapter 295: 111. Liberty

"Let me see, you, you, and you, this Gretto Yegg, are all strong fighters of Beta Rank, but what of it? Even though I’m just a prison guard of Alpha Stage, right now you wouldn’t dare lay a finger on me."

The head of the prison guards spoke insolently and strutted to the front of the group, lifting his chin so he could see Gretto’s face. With flaring nostrils, he sneered:

"What’s the matter? Lost your nerve?"

"What do you want?" Gretto Yegg asked in a deep voice.

"Oh dear, you’re making too much of it; I’m just a little public servant, how could I dare to do anything to a Beta Rank like you? You are an Elite, Gretto Yegg, I know you, you were a famous surgeon before, right? Tsk tsk tsk, Doctor, truly wonderful, Doctor ’sensei’, someone like you could easily become a celebrity and elite of Society, but you just don’t understand the feelings of us little people."

The prison guard twisted his brows and eyes into a seam, saying cheerfully:

"I don’t plan on doing anything – just that I happen to be on good terms with Warden Ozawa’s personal doctor, and this doctor happens to know how to deliver babies. Unfortunately for you, this doctor will not serve prisoners unless I ask him to."

"Help!" A pregnant woman’s wretched scream came from the corridor again: "Save my child, he’s going to get stuck, anyone, please save my baby."

"You idiot—" a prisoner gnashed his teeth in hatred: "Hey, Gretto, go save that pregnant woman."

"I can’t." Gretto shook his head: "This place’s sanitary conditions make surgery impossible, it would only lead to uterine infection, and furthermore..."

He lifted his hand, squeezing his fist, barely able to produce a flicker of Life Particles.

Without those, the safety of the mother and the fetus cannot be guaranteed at all.

Even with the current medical standards in developed countries, the maternal mortality rate still reaches 16.1 per 100,000, meaning about 16 pregnant women out of every 100,000 would die, with common causes including postpartum hemorrhage, amniotic fluid embolism, and uterine rupture.

Especially postpartum hemorrhage, a severe complication during labor, is the leading cause of maternal death. Moreover, without screening, if conditions such as amniotic fluid embolism are present, these childbirth complications have a mortality rate as high as 60%, which is a major cause of maternal death.

If anything unexpected were to occur, obstructed labor leading to a uterine rupture is possible; Sky Ring people, due to their reliance on cesarean sections, have seen a year-on-year increase in the incidence of uterine rupture.

When Gretto heard Miura mention that Lady Meina’s waters had broken, under normal circumstances, one should lie down immediately after their water breaks—if standing or walking, more amniotic fluid will be lost, and it’s very dangerous if the umbilical cord comes out with the fluid, getting stuck in the cervix, which can affect fetal blood and oxygen supply.

—But in such a cold environment, having someone lie down would undoubtedly cause the patient’s body temperature to rapidly drop.

Childbirth is not an easy thing, and difficult childbirth poses a significant risk to the life of both the baby and the mother, a hurdle that even modern medicine cannot completely overcome—let alone in a prison without sanitation or instruments, with even temperature and humidity severely exceeding standards.

What’s worse, without diagnostic equipment, the condition of the pregnant woman herself during pregnancy, such as gestational hypertension, diabetes, etc., are all unknown.

Gretto Yegg could not operate.

If he had that power, that healing Life Force of Redemption, he could provide the pregnant woman with the utmost support, helping her through the ordeal.

"So how does it feel to have your Extraordinary Power restrained?"

The prison guard stood on tiptoes, stretching his arm to pat Gretto’s shoulder, trying several times to whisper in his ear, but Gretto was simply too tall. His face reddening, the guard finally shouted:

"Kneel."

Gretto Yegg opened his mouth, saying:

"At least let me go have a look at the situation—"

"Are you deaf, sir," the prison guard stared at him sneeringly, "I told you to kneel."

"Hey, you beast!" The prisoners were filled with righteous indignation, ready to strike him.

What a joke, Gretto Yegg was their leader, their symbol—if he knelt, wouldn’t that mean they had all submitted?

He could not kneel.

No matter what, he could not kneel.

Gretto Yegg stared at the man, suddenly threw a punch, knocking the prison guard to the ground; then, half-kneeling, he grabbed the guard’s collar and said coldly:

"I kneel, and you will pay dearly for it."

Having said that, he immediately turned around and rushed deeper into the cell block.